


A start

by NerdGirl07



Category: Anne with an E (TV)
Genre: Anne and Josie friendship, Billy is the worst, Mentions of Sexual Assault, aftermath of 3.06, feminist Anne
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-30
Updated: 2019-10-30
Packaged: 2021-01-13 12:00:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,228
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21243743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NerdGirl07/pseuds/NerdGirl07
Summary: “I was so scared Anne.”In the aftermath of 3.06 Anne and Josie have an important talk.





	A start

Anne and Josie sat companionably, side by side in the Cuthberts kitchen, their heads bent over their school books, and a plate of Marilla’s plum puffs in front of them. The two girls who had once been sworn enemies had put their petty rivalry aside as of late, and become good friends. The kind of friends you can only have when you have a shared understanding of shared experiences. 

Anne had thought her article and outbursts at both the fair and schoolhouse would only serve to make Josie more angry and humiliated; instead Josie had sought her out. Josie needed and ally, and Anne never wasted a chance to fight for what was right. Now, in light of Josie’s recent scandal Anne was helping Josie with her studies as the blood haired girl had changed her mind about queens university, hoping that getting out of Avonlea for a few years would afford her a fresh start, or at the very least give the recent scandal a chance to dry out. It was there, in the solitude of the Cuthbert’s quiet, sunny kitchen that Josie found herself able to speak about what had happened for the first time.

“I was so scared Anne.” Josie said quietly, out of the blue.

Anne froze, the hand that had been writing sums on her slate stilling abruptly.

“I know.” She answered softly, heavily. And the two short, weighty, words told Josie everything she needed to hear. Anne did know. Anne understood. This gave Josie the courage she needed to keep talking. 

“I trusted him. I didn’t know he was going to...I never thought he would...everyone keeps calling me a slut. Saying I must have loose morals, and led him on, and begged him for kisses and...and more.” Josie looked at Anne, her eyes shattered looking and filled with tears. “But I didn’t. I never wanted him to touch me, or kiss me. I kept telling him no, and to stop, but he...he wouldn’t listen. I tried to...I didn’t want him to…” her voice broke.

“You didn’t want him to touch you.” Anne supplied, her voice hollow, and her eyes haunted. Josie’s head snapped up, eyeing Anne with sympathy, as well as a touch of curiosity.

“The whole time I wanted to try and fight him off but it was like I was frozen. I was too scared. My brain was telling me: Do this! Do that! Do something! but I couldn’t, it was like my body wouldn’t respond and I- I- I...” she burst into tears, harsh sobs wracking her body. She collapsed onto Anne hugging her tightly and pulling her into a tight embrace. Anne clung to her just as tightly, leaking some tears of her own. 

Eventually they calmed down and let go of their embrace. 

“Thank you Anne” Josie whispered brokenly. “Thank you for being my friend. For believing me. For understanding, even though no one else does. You have no idea what it means to me that even one person doesn’t think I’m either a slut or a liar.”

The entire town of Avonlea may be shunning or insulting her, but having Anne as a friend made it bearable for Josie. After all, she was Josie Pye, she could get through anything. She may have been humiliated and scared by Billy Andrews to the point where she woke up three times a night from nightmares. She might shiver every time she remembered the feeling of his hands and lips on her skin; but it wouldn’t last forever. Hopefully. In any case she would come back from this. She wasn’t ok now but she would be again one day soon. Soon she would once again rule this town, and she would remember Anne’s friendship when that time came.

Annne laughed mournfully. “I can only imagine what it would have been like to have a friend who believed me at the orphanage.”

And really, that was all she could do. She could only imagine the difference a friend would have made. Because a friend hadn’t been a reality at the orphanage. 

Her mind flashed back to years bounced from family to family and back to the orphanage. Again and again and again. She remembered all the times she had been touched as well as hit, violated as well as humiliated, shunned and returned to the orphanage. Over and over again. Even now she could feel ghostly hands groping across her chest and pinching at her bottom, accompanied by disembodied taunts. Harsh beating followed and the next day she was once again on the doorstep of the orphanage. There she would spend the next few weeks being called a slut by the matron. The only upside was the matron usually tired of calling her names realtively quickly and placed her out again as soon as the oportunity arose. This was a blessing to Anne, because no matter how bad, and embarrassing, and frightening being in service had been, the orphanage had been worse. 

“You have friends now Anne.” Josie told her, “and I believe you. That’s what matters.”

“No one else would.” Anne said bitterly, “not a single person at the fair defended you, when it was clear you were upset. And the next day all anyone would talk about was your reputation. They didn’t care a bit that that absolute pig Billy Andrews forced himself on you. And not one of them talked badly about him either. The boys talked about him with admiration, and the girls scarcely mentioned him. It takes two to kiss, so even if it was consensual, which we both know it wasn’t, why wouldn't he be penalized for having ‘loose morals’ too? He did it to you! He was more involved than you were! And yet you’re the one shamed! It’s ridiculous!”

“That’s not true.” Josie interjected. “You defended me, at both the fair and the schoolhouse. And I think, no I know, things would be a lot worse for me if you hadn’t spoken up. Maybe nobody believes me, and everyone thinks me a slut. But your speeches and accusations made them doubt it, at least for a moment. And when people doubt something they start to really think. You’ve got the entirety of Avonlea thinking, which is a rare occurrence. You’ve got them all wondering ‘what if?’ ‘What if Josie Pye isn’t lying?’ ‘What if Billy Andrews is the one at fault?’ And when people start thinking theses things they’re going to start thinking bigger. ‘What if our entire way of thinking is wrong?’ ‘What if girls like Josie Pye are victims rather than villains?’ ‘What if boys like Billy Andrews are really the ones at fault?’ That’s how the world changes Anne, when people start to really think. You can’t change someone’s mind for them, that’s something only they can do. So maybe your speeches didn’t do much, but they’ve got people thinking. It’s not the glorious change and justice you envision Anne, but it’s a start. A good start.”

“A good start.” Anne repeated thoughtfully.

If it was a victory it was bitter one. Neither Anne, nor Josie, nor the hundreds of other girls who had been wronged would soon get the justice they deserved. Maybe justice wouldn’t happen for any girls for many years to come, but it was a start. 

It was a start.


End file.
